S.A. fan’s wish granted: Betty White hosting SNL on May 8

It’s official! Betty White will host “Saturday Night Live” for the first time on May 8 — and she has a San Antonio fan to thank for the gig.

“I’m ecstatic,” David Mathews, who works for a locally based telecommunications firm, said of today’s confirmation in USA Today that the event he’s been pushing for since December was actually going to happen.

Read more from Mathews in my Jeanne Jakle column in S.A. Life this Sunday in the San Antonio Express-News.

The 29-year-old started the campaign out of deep appreciation for White’s memorable turn in “The Golden Girls” as well as her timeless comedy savvy in general.

He initiated the fan page — “Betty White to host SNL (please?)!” — some three months ago, but it really took off in terms of fan support after White’s popular Super Bowl ad this year. It now boasts nearly half-a-million fans.

According to USA Today, which quoted SNL creator Lorne Michaels, White and Mathews, White will host a special Mother’s Day show. She will lead a reunion of six former female cast members, most of them moms: Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Molly Shannon, Maya Rudolph, Ana Gasteyer and Rachel Dratch.

Though White herself has no kids of her own — unless you count her beloved golden retriever, Pontiac — SNL creator Lorne Michaels told USA Today, “she’s the mother of us all in comedy, so it will be a celebration of Betty White.”

White, 88, also will have the distinction of being the oldest host in SNL history. Michaels saidt she can perform “as much as she wants to do” but adds that the physical demands of the show led him to plan the cast reunion, though make no mistake: White is the solo host.

As for White, she said she’s flattered by the offer and the loud clamoring by Facebook. “It’s lovely, and at my age it’s certainly unexpected,” she said in USA today, adding she’s not worried about the workload: “I’ve got so much energy, it’s ridiculous. I love working. My schedule is a feverish one, and I’m used to that.”

What I’m waiting for? The invitation that would complete the dream for Matthews: Two seats in the audience of the May 8 show and a chance to meet Betty face to face.

He should know soon whether that part will come true. Cross your fingers.

Meantime, Mathews, who already had the honor of being interviewed by Diane Sawyer, just got another big call — from “Countdown with Keith Olbermann.” The MSNBC show asked if he’d be willing to go on — via satellite — for a five-to-seven minute interview. It could happen Friday. . .or next week. I’ll keep you updated.